Planning board delays parking ordinance amid questions over 'improved surface' and setbacks

At a Planning Board meeting, staff introduced Ordinance 17-19 to add specific guidance to the city code on vehicle parking, including limits on front-yard storage of boats, utility trailers and RVs and a new requirement that such vehicles be parked on an "improved" surface that meets minimum stability and stormwater treatment standards.

Dave, a planning staff member, told the board the changes are intended to give code enforcement clearer authority and to address recurring complaints about abandoned vehicles and trailers. "What we're proposing here is to put some additional guidance in our code to help in particular our code enforcement officers," he said.

The draft would: bar semi/tractor-trailers from consuming required off-street parking in commercial districts; replace the term "prepared" with "improved" surface and require a minimum level of stormwater treatment and stability; limit the front yard to a single boat, utility trailer, RV or special-purpose vehicle at any one time; require vehicles standing in yards to have current registration; and establish a 3-foot clearance between such vehicles and the exterior of buildings in some provisions.

Board members pressed staff to define "improved" in technical terms and to re-evaluate the 3-foot setback requirement. One member noted typical side-yard widths in Cocoa Beach and asked whether the setback would make side‑yard parking infeasible in many neighborhoods. Staff said they would consult the city engineer and the fire marshal and bring design guidelines or a technical definition back to the board.

Two residents who addressed the board said the ordinance, as drafted, would unintentionally penalize lawful owners who use boats and RVs regularly. Byron Evans, a resident who also works as a contract city engineer, said the draft "strikes me a little bit as overreach" and argued the one‑hour limit for certain parking situations is impractical. "If I'm going to leave [a trailer] there while I work on it, that would be disallowed by this," he said. Garrett Coogie, another resident, warned the draft could burden small-business owners who keep work trailers on site and said enforcement and storage availability need clearer answers.

After discussion and public comment, the board did not take a final vote to adopt the ordinance. Instead, members agreed staff should refine the draft—defining "improved" surface, revisiting setbacks and timing limits, and consulting technical staff—and return with revised language at a future meeting. The board moved and voted to table Ordinance 17-19 to allow those changes.

Next steps: staff will draft technical definitions and design guidance, consult the city engineer and fire marshal as appropriate, and return the ordinance to the board for further review.